Manufacturer:
Year: 1990
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This is a hockey simulation more than a videogame: Williams presents a parody of all the
worst you can imagine coming out of an ice palace. The place is USA, teams are simply called Reds and Blues, and if you
watch carefully at the scoreboard you'll notice two flags: USA and Canada. As match is about to begin, you'll even hear an
excerpt of the US hymn.
Then the referee goes in the middle of the playground with two players per team, and the first period begins! Total game
time is fifteen minutes, divided in three periods of five minutes each. We'll have to insert a coin at every two minutes -
or game is over.
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During the game, you'll see an all but calm and polite audience: people throwing empty
bottles of beer, chewed hotdogs, spits, and whatever you'd have in your pockets when going to see a hockey match. Hey who
did never spit inside of an hockey ground? No one I think heh...
Game rules are almost the same as in a real hockey match: if a team scores a goal or the goalkeeper catches and holds the
disc, game will start with another face-off. You'll often have to strongly punch your opponents (not just punches actually:
pole smashes, body charges etc...) but looks like the referee finds it's just normal and he'll never stop action.
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Players can be selected before the match begins. You'll have to choose the goalkeeper and a
runner, while the other one player is chosen and operated by the CPU. The opponent team is entirely chosen randomly by the
CPU. You can play solo or in multi-player up to four players mode - in such case each human player controls a team
member.
Allowed actions are fists and body charges plus passage, low and high shots, plus the funniest super-shot: at first you move
a player behind the goal line, make the disc jump high to your partner, who's spinning like a dancer in the middle of the
playground; at this point he'll hit the disc with an impressive speed and strenght!
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Before starting a match and a period, you'll see the locker room where game techniques and
strategies are shown. Before going back to the playground you'll watch a sort of spot, which promotes a energizer drink:
it's better not to refuse it, so let's add another coin to buy the powerful potion. Its effect is fast and furious: player
runs as quickly as a horse and the shots coming out of his pole are violent and skillful: 99 goals out of 100 shots, even
taking the goalkeeper inside of the net! A quite unfair game actually, but it's there, available at every additional coin.
The powerful effect lasts a few whiles though.
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The score table keeps us informed about current score and available time for the period, and
it also emphatizes the most spectacular actions like defenses, shots and hat tricks.
As the third period time ends, game is over and game stats are shown. If we scored enough points with our runner player,
we'll be asked to insert our initials in the highest score table.
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Ratings
PRESENTATION: 83%
It explains everything about gameplay and chance to play a 4-humans mode.
GRAPHICS: 82%
Not varying at all, though fast, well-drawn and some touches of class.
SOUND: 66%
Short tunes and good quality sound effects.
ORIGINALITY: 81%
A really original interpretation of a real hockey match.
HOOKABILITY: 67%
Spectacularity of presentation, the gameplay itself and the great playability make it attractive at first sight.
LASTABILITY: 37%
What a pity we have to insert coins repeteadly and the lacking of a team trophy mode.
OVERALL: 58%
It's a funny, well-designed parody of a real sport, but you have nothing more to discover after playing all three periods. You'll soon find it boring.
I guess how many coins are
necessary in order to complete this videogame: you have to insert one at every two minutes - that's you don't even complete a
period! Then, after inserting three coins it's suitable to buy the potion to increase your team's skills (one more coin yeah!)
So... the total is... around twelve coins to play an entire match - if you always but the vitamins. I have to admit that I'd
probably refuse playing this videogame in an arcade. This is very annoying even when you play it on Raine.
Apart from this all, I admit the game is quite funny, but you'll soon find it boring. Also, there are a few places in the game
ground which will allow you to always score a goal by shooting from there - and if you also bought the vitamins you'll always
score goals. Funny for the first minutes but then you'll leave it forever.
Ah well, this is one of those
games I loved to play as a kid... for a couple of minutes at least. It's a hockey game with some beat'em-up action. No
presentation, boring graphics along with animations (if there are any). Sound doesn't really exists since there are almost only
effects and nothing else - speech samples are OK though.
Well, I didn't really get hooked up to this game. The different players you could choose from are the only interesting thing I saw.
What about playing it longer than some minutes? You might finish one match, but what after? Nope, maybe if you can get three other
pals to play along with you: this gets a little funnier, otherwise don't try it. It ain't worth it.
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